Bound By Bliss by Lavinia Kent Review

In
Lavinia Kent’s luscious, erotic historical romance, a free spirit learns her
true desires from a master of the heart, of the body—and of the sweetest
discipline.

Lady Bliss Danser,
daughter of the Duke of Mirth, is a scandal waiting to erupt. Which is why her
highly conventional brother wants to saddle her with Stephan Perth, Earl of
Duldon, the only man he thinks will marry her. Worse, Stephan keeps threatening
to punish her, to teach her just how a woman should behave. His words may cause
Bliss to tingle in the strangest places, but that doesn’t mean she likes the
man himself.

Stephan has secretly desired Bliss for years, but he knows how close he is to
losing his beloved. Careful not to rile her impetuous heart, he promises only
to aid Bliss in her search for another fiancé. And if she’s determined to
understand the male body first, he’s happy to comply in that regard as well.
However, she must follow his rules or face the consequences. Slowly he takes
Bliss to the darker, steamier side of his world . . . where she realizes that
Stephan is everything she’s ever wanted.

I have
to say I was unsure of this book when I started reading Bound By Bliss, with
words like “particular tastes” and “to be a man of uncertain tastes”, I was
thinking “what the heck am I reading?” But as the book unfolds, it is such a
racy story.

We
start the book, with neither of the lead characters! Lady Perse has decided to
visit Ruby, aka Madame Rouge (an upper class brothel owner, with a surprising
connection to the Lady), to discuss her nephew Stephan Perth, Lord Duldon, and
his choice of bride. She asks Ruby to find Duldon a wife.

Stephan
Duldon has found the women he wants to marry; he wants Lady Bliss Danser. He
wants to be her master, to make her behind red, ultimately he wants her to submit
to him (that’s right, only BDSM ladies). But Bliss doesn’t want to marry Dull
Don, even though her heart beats only for him…thus begins a cat and mouse game between
them, with a few dirty rats thrown in for good measure.

I
REALLY enjoyed Bound By Bliss, it is BDSM-lite with one voyeuristic m/m scene, and
so if you dislike a gay scene, this might not be the book for you. I have to admit
that this is my first every historical BDSM book I have every read. It wasn’t
silly or cringe-worthy, but tastefully written, with a solid plot.

I
found the characters very fascinating, from Lady Persey to Bliss, you can
almost picture them in your mind, like you know then personally. I would have
liked to know a little more about Bliss’ family, but I am thinking that that
could be in another book.

I will
say again, I found the whole book a delightful change and I normally don’t discuss
the art work on the covers, but this is one of my favorite covers! It is
earthy, classy and sexy all at the same time.

Lavinia Kent is a former
two-term president of the Washington Romance Writers and a four-time Romance
Writers of America Golden Heart nominee. She lives in Washington, D.C., with
her family and an ever-changing menagerie of pets.